Romania enacts legal reform to accelerate urban planning and permitting

In April 2025, the Romanian government adopted Emergency Ordinance no. 31/2025, introducing targeted reforms to improve efficiency and predictability in urban planning and building permit processes.

Key provisions include:

• Maximum 30 days for issuing approvals related to urban planning documentation (PUG,
PUZ, PUD)
• Maximum 15 days for issuing endorsements during the permitting phase;
• Tacit approval (silence means consent) in most cases if authorities exceed the legal deadlines;
• Simultaneous submission of all required approvals, cutting sequential delays;
• Authorities may request clarifications only once per application, with mandatory justification;
• Sanctions introduced for administrative delays or non-compliance.

These changes are designed to reduce bureaucratic friction, shorten permitting cycles, and provide greater legal certainty for developers, investors, and asset owners.

The ordinance reflects a broader policy effort to align real estate processes with the pace of capital deployment, particularly for commercial, logistics and infrastructure-related developments.

Source: https://legislatie.just.ro/Public/DetaliiDocumentAfis/297058